RESEARCH

What is it?
The Motor Domain controls movement, coordination, balance and timing. It allows us to move smoothly and with confidence.

Why is it important?
Healthy motor function supports independence, physical confidence and injury prevention. Changes in motor control can affect everything from walking to fine hand movements.

How does rhythm help?
Drumming trains the body to move in time with a steady beat. Playing rhythms improves coordination between hands and feet, reinforces timing, and supports smoother, more controlled movement.

This study found that drummers’ brains are physically and functionally different from non-drummers. The two sides of their brain communicate more efficiently, their movement areas work with less effort, and the brain chemicals involved in controlling movement are more finely balanced.

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Rhythm is key to the treatment of Parkinson's. Drumming to a strong beat helps to retrain the brain by providing a rhythmic cue that people can use to initiate and time their movements.

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Stroke patients that took part in drumming sessions twice a week improved the function in their arms and hands, which helped them re-learn essential tasks like getting dressed.

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Mu-band (8-14Hz) entrainment significantly reduces motor and vocal tics, as well as reducing the urge-to-tic in Tourette syndrome.

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What is it?
The Cognitive Domain supports focus, attention, memory and planning. It’s how the brain processes information and makes sense of the world.

Why is it important?
Strong cognitive function helps us stay mentally sharp, learn new skills and manage daily tasks. When cognition is under pressure, people may experience brain fog, poor concentration, or forgetfulness.

How does rhythm help?
Drumming challenges the brain to focus, remember patterns and stay in time. Keeping a beat and coordinating rhythms requires active thinking, which helps strengthen attention and mental flexibility over time.

Drumming teaches you when to play but also when to pause, which can be really helpful in controlling impulsive behaviour. 

Drumming for 90 minutes a week has been found to reduce hyperactivity and inattention in autistic adolescents, it also strengthens functional connectivity in brain regions responsible for inhibitory control and action outcome monitoring.

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Drumming has been found to help reduce the frequency and intensity of tics during periods of heightened stress or anxiety for individuals with Tourette syndrome.

Read the blog on Tourette's & drumming

This recent study found that older adults who regularly listen to or play an instrument, like the drums, appear to have significantly lower risks (up to 40%) of dementia and cognitive decline. The data suggests that musical engagement, whether passive or active, could be a powerful, enjoyable tool for supporting cognitive resilience in aging.

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This study found that drumming offered significant benefits in terms of improved cognition with verbal fluency and attention.

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Brain plasticity is the brain's ability to change and adapt throughout our lives, rewiring itself in response to new experiences, learning, and environmental changes. Regular drumming increases the number of neural connections in the brain, leading to enhanced plasticity.

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What is it?
The Sensory Domain helps the brain receive and interpret information from the senses, especially sound, touch and body awareness.

Why is it important? 

Good sensory processing helps us respond accurately to our environment. When sensory input isn’t well integrated, movements and reactions can feel awkward or overwhelming.

How does rhythm help?
Drumming is a multi-sensory experience. You hear the beat, feel the vibration, and sense your body moving together. This strengthens the brain’s ability to combine sensory information in a meaningful, coordinated way.

Across multiple trials and meta-analyses, slow-tempo music (60-80 bpm), simple rhythms, and smooth melodies were associated with improved sleep efficiency. 

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Musical rhythm can act as a relaxing, attention-capturing stimulus, easing cognitive arousal before sleep.

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Music can reduce sympathetic nervous system activity, decrease anxiety, blood pressure, heart and respiratory rate and may have positive effects on sleep via muscle relaxation and distraction from thoughts. 

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Drumming releases endorphins in the brain which are natural pain-relieving and mood enhancing chemicals that can help reduce headache symptoms. Drumming can also divert attention away from pain, providing a positive and engaging activity that can help reduce the frequency and intensity of headaches and migraines.

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What is it?
The Social Emotional Domain supports mood, motivation, emotional regulation, and social connection.

Why is it important?
Emotional wellbeing plays a huge role in overall brain health. Feeling connected, confident and motivated supports learning, movement and long-term resilience.

How does rhythm help?
Rhythm is deeply social. Playing along with music, or with others, creates connection and shared experience. Drumming can lift mood, reduce stress and build confidence through simple, achievable success.

The structured nature of drumming and beat patterns helps alleviate physical and psychological tension through non verbal self-expression. Taking control of the drums helps people take control of themselves.

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This study found that group drumming offered significant benefits in terms of reduced anxiety and symptoms of depression.

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Drumming is a non verbal way to express emotions without harming yourself or others.

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Study by the Royal College of Music found that group drumming significantly improved depression, anxiety and social resilience compared with a non-music control group.

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Texas singer Sharleen Spiteri found that playing the drums helped her cope with the menopause. Bandmate Johnny McElhone suggested Sharleen drum in the video for their single 'After All' and their drummer,

Cat Myers, became her drum tutor. 

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Organisations like The Rockworks Academy in Wrexham offer community drumming for ladies, designed to encourage social bonding and shared experiences.

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Watch Neuroscientist Lisa Mosconi's TEDx talk on How Menopause Affects The Brain and this impacts cognitive health. Sharing groundbreaking findings from her research, Lisa reveals how decreasing hormonal levels affect brain aging and shares simple lifestyle changes you can make to support lifelong brain health, around diet, exercise and sleep.

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Trauma can isolate and disconnect people from society. Drumming studies with soldiers have been found to increase a sense of openness, togetherness and sharing. 

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What is it?
The Behavioural Domain relates to actions and routines, how we start, maintain and repeat healthy behaviours over time.

Why is it important?
Brain health depends on what we do consistently. Movement, learning, sleep and social engagement all rely on habits, not willpower alone.

How does rhythm help?
Drumming is engaging and enjoyable, which makes it easier to stick with. Rhythm encourages routine, repetition and consistency, helping people build positive habits that support long-term brain health.

The structured nature of drumming and beat patterns has been found to help alleviate physical and psychological tension through non verbal self-expression. As people take control of the drums, they actually take control of themselves.

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Studies suggest that drumming can be a particularly effective distraction from eating disorder behaviours, especially in a group drumming workshop or a community setting.

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